[STATEMENT] Free the Bugsuk 10: Stop development aggression and uphold the rights of indigenous peoples!

The Asia Pacific Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines  (APCHRP) strongly denounces the arrest of ten individuals, including members of the Molbog Indigenous community, who have been slapped with trumped-up charges of grave coercion in Brgy. Bugsuk, Balabac Island, Palawan last 15 May. 

The arrests are clearly retaliation by the San Miguel Corporation (SMC) on the Molbog people, who have been resisting moves by the giant corporation to transform their ancestral lands for eco-tourism purposes. Their plans violate the rights of indigenous peoples by disturbing their sacred domain and way of life. Among those arrested is Molbog leader Eusebio Pelayo, who had already been targeted with similar trumped-up charges in December 2024.

The grave coercion charge was filed against them by former National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) Officer-in-Charge, Atty. Caesar Ortega. Residents of Barangay Bugsuk reported previously that  Ortega had visited their community last June 2024 and attempted to coerce the Molbog people into surrendering their ancestral land in exchange for cash sums ranging from P75,000 to P100,000. These residents believe that their refusal to surrender their ancestral land is what caused Ortega to file these bogus charges against their community members. Ironically, it should be Ortega instead who should be charged with grave coercion. 

On the same day as Ortega’s visit, a Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) official announced to residents that their homes were to be demolished to pave way for SMC’s 5,500-hectare “Bugsuk Island Resort.” Two days later, private goons from JMV Services arrived at Brgy. Bugsuk to intimidate and harass the residents.

This pattern of abuse and intimidation tactics is only strengthened by the presence of U.S. troops on the island. It is important to note that one of the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites is located on Balabac Island, Palawan. The increased presence of U.S. troops on the island, under the guise of national security, exacerbates the violence and displacement experienced by the people of Palawan, especially of Indigenous Peoples. It not only heightens the risk of human rights violations but also deters rightful land reclamation and self-determination efforts. Indigenous lands should not be treated as military zones.

The APCHRP has consistently denounced the presence of U.S. military bases in the Philippines, and it is again calling for the end to these EDCA bases not just in Palawan but all over the Philippines as well. 

At the same time, the APCHRP condemns the wrongful arrest of 10 individuals from the Molbog community last 15 May. Indigenous peoples’ rights to their ancestral domain should be respected, not trampled upon for the benefit of large corporations. We also call on the NCIP to fulfill its mandate of protecting the rights and welfare of indigenous peoples, rather than to aid the military and police in their so-called “counter-insurgency” operations – which only results in the violation of human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL). 

We call for the immediate release of the 10 arrested individuals, an end to the militarization and corporate encroachment of Indigenous lands, and a thorough investigation into the abuses committed by state agencies in collusion with private entities. The rights of Indigenous Peoples to their land, life, and self-determination must be upheld without compromise.